Tenter clip



J. E. WATERMAN v2,898,661

TENTER CLIP Aug. l1, 1959 Filed July 24, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 l www Vi.

ATTORNEYS,

J. E. WATERMAN 4 2,898,661.

TENTER CLIP Aug. 11, 1959 Filed July 24, 195,6 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l` L W"1 IN VEN TOR.

n70/W7 l l/fe fm d ATTORNEYS United States Patent f TENTER CLIPApplication July 24, 1956, Serial No. 599,873

7 Claims. (Cl. 26-62) This invention relates to an improved constructionof a tenter clip which is capable of high speed operation.

It has been the practice in the manufacture of tenter clips to cast agenerally arcuate body for the clip and have depending from an upperportion thereof a pivoting jaw which is adapted to wedge the cloth. Inorder to insure a positive gripping action, it has been found necessalyin some of the prior art devices to fashion the edge of the pivoting jawas a sharp blade. This blade, While not sharp enough to cut the cloth,would still be sharp enough to bite the cloth and substantially preventslippage. Maintenance of this type of tenter clip necessitates thefrequent sharpening of the aforementioned edges to insure a properaction of the clip.

It is therefore one of the main objects of this invention to overcomesome of these maintenance ditiiculties and provide a jaw which does notneed to have a sharp edge for positive engagement with the cloth.

A further object of the invention is to provide a tenter clip which hasa toggle action instead of a straight pivoting action.

A further object of the invention is to provide a clip constructionwhich has two remote points of contact to effect the opening thereof.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a tenter clipwhich has a self-aligning jaw.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of certainnovel features of construction as will be more fully described andparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure l is a side elevational view of a tenter clip afixed to a chainon the rails of a tenter;

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the .tenter clip viewed fromllines 2--2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a plan view of a single clip viewed from lines 3--3 ofFigure l;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1 and showing the tenter clip in openposition; and Fig. 5 is a view of a fragmentary portion of the tenterclip shown in Fig. 4 but on an enlarged scale.

In proceeding with my invention, I provide a tenter clip with the usualbase plate and attach to this base plate an upright supporting member.Reciprocating through this upright member in an axis substantiallyparallel to the plane of the base plate is a shaft which carries at oneend thereof the upper pivoting axis of a jaw. At a point remote fromthis pivoting axis, a link is attached to the jaw and to the uprightmember. Action of the jaw can be secured by exerting a force on thereciprocating shaft.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, there is shown a base platewhich may be fashioned from suitable steel and which is substantiallyflat throughout its extent. Mounted on the base plate is an uprightmember 11 which is provided with two wing sections 12, 12 that may beintegral or rigidly afxed thereto. The upright member 11 is providedwith a bore 13 through which there is passed a shaft 14. lPivotallymounted at one 2,898,661 Patented Aug. 11, 1959 end of this shaft 14 ona section 14 thereof, which may be rectangular in cross section, is ajaw generally designated 15.

Referring now to Figure 2, it will be seen that this jaw 15 has a bodyportion 16 with upstanding arms 17--17' nearI the center thereof andadditional upstanding arms 18-18 at each end thereof. The upper lend ofthese arms 1'7--17 and 18-18' is provided with a bore through which apivot pin 19 passes, the pivot pin also passing through a bore in therectangular portion 14 of the shaft 14. The jaw 15 is thereforepivotally related to the shaft 14 for swinging movement. To provide thedesired action of the jaw, a pair of links Ztl-20 are pivotally relatedto the Wings 12-12 by providing a slot 21 in each of the wings andpassing a pin 22 through the wings 12--12 and the link arms 20--20. Theother ends of the links 20-20 are pivotally related to the jaw 15 byproviding a pair of slots 23 in the body 16 of the jaw and passing a pin24 through the body 16 and the links Ztl-20. A helical spring 26 biasesthe shaft 14 with relation to the body 11 so as to maintain the clip ina closed position, the spring 2.6 extending between theV body 11 and acollar 27 rigidly aixed to the shaft'14 as by a pin 28.

The tenter clip just described may be mounted on the usual tenter chainwhich consists of a pair of links such` as 3i) mounted between a pair ofrollers 31 by a rivet such as 32 that passes through the links 30 andinto the base plate 1l) of the clip. The completed assembly maytherefore be mounted in the usual tenter rail 40 which may have a frontcasing 41 and a top casing 42 as is usual in the art.

At the cloth receiving end of the tenter chains, the jaw 15 of thetenter clip is held in the open position by a cam (not shown) which iscoupled to shaft 14 so that the marginal edge of the cloth which isbeing guided to the tenter chains will be received over the base plate10. The cloth C extends beneath the jaw 15 and overlies slots 10S. As

the chains advance forwardly a distance suicient to free the clip ofsaid cams, the shaft 14 under urge of spring 26 will be moved in adirection to swing jaw 15 about pivot 24 in a counter clockwisedirection (as viewed in the drawings), iinger 15f being carried by thejaw into engagement with the cloth and arresting further movement of theshaft 14 and said jaw 15 (see Fig. 4). The tenter chains as they moveforward on the machine diverge as desired, and the cloth will eventuallyslip from beneath finger 15]L allowing the same to drop into slot 10S.The jaw 15 in turn engages and holds the cloth iirrnly against the baseplate 10. At the end of the forwardly travel of the chains, the clipwill be moved to open position by the usual cams (not shown) at theforward end of the machine.

Referring to Fig. 5, it will be seen that the pivot 19 is moved along astraight line indicated SL. It will also be seen that links 20, Ztlallow pivot 24 to move only on radius 20A. yIt will also be apparentthat in the open position of the jaw, the radius 19R from pivot 19intersects radius ZllA at point P. In the closed position of jaw 15indicated in broken lines 15', the radius 19R intersects the radius 20Aat point P. Thus, it will be apparent that pivot 24 moves from open toclosed position and from closed to open position along a short arcbetween point P and P', which arc is nearly a straight vertical line.This results in a compound movement of the center C of the radius of therounded end of the jaw to be moved in a nearly vertical path. Thus, thejaw of the clip in effect comes down on the cloth in a pathsubstantially at right angles thereto and is released from the cloth inthe same but reversed path. The rounded end of the clip presents a pointcontact against the cloth, and there is no necessity for a sharp edge asin prior devices; Thus, when `the operating nger releases the jaw, theclip lwillcome down upon the cloth in nearly vertical fashion, theWedging action being maintained by the angular relationship of the jaw15 with relation Vto the base plate lfand theslight pressure that-is'additionally exerted byA the spring-26 acting on the operatingshaft14 Referring particularly to Figure 2, it will be noted lthatindistinction to some offtheV prior art-devices in which the jaw= ofthetentercli'pjis pivoted at one end thereof, IY

have here astructure in-Which the jaw'15 is allowed to rock-Withrelation to the base'plate 10. This comes about due to theA fact thatthe operatingshaft 14 iscylindrica1y and allows a tilting action of thebody 16' relative to the base plate; This particular feature insurespositive alignment of the contacting edge of the jaw with the base plate-'and consequently the cloth.

I" have shown; forl example, the usual operator 25 which` is adaptedy tocontacta cammed surface adjacent totheV center rail, b'ut it will be, ofcourse, understood that, if desired,- thev operation mayV be carried" onby a cammed surface Which will contact the generally rounded' end'27 ofthe collar27. In a similar but reverse fashion,` it will bev apparentthat the clip will disengage the cloth in a manner which willpractically prevent'the tear,- inggthereof, inasmuch as the contactingedge of the jaw rises nearly vertical.

I claim:

1. A tenter clip having a base plate, an upright member mountedon saidplate, a jaw, a shaftmounted'for reciprocation by said member, one endof said'shaft pivotallyv related to an upper end of said jaw, a link,said linkpivotally relatedto said member and to said jaw at a pointremote from the'shaft attachment point,V wherebyV upon moving said shaftin one or the other directions saidl jaw will be moved about said link.

2. A tenter clip as in claim 1 wherein the lower end of said 4jawhas'arounded end.

3.' A tenterclip vhaving a base plate, a support extending from saidbase plate, a shaft slidably mounted on said'support, a jaw pivotallymounted on said shaft for movement toward and from said base plate, alink pivotally mounted at one end thereof to said support and pivotallyconnected at the other end thereof on said jaw at a location thereonintermediate the ends of said jaw, whereby upon sliding said shaft invoneor the other direction said jaw will be moved about its pivotalconnection 4to saidlink.

4; Attenter clipV asset forthinl claim 3 lwherein said shaft is springbiased for movement in one direction.

.7 A' tenter clip having a base plate, a support extendi ingffrom saidbase plate, a shaft slidably mounted on said support, ajaw. pivotallymounted'at one end thereof. to said shaft and extending therefrom towardsaid base platea linkfpivotallyl mountedat one end-thereof onsaidsupport and atthe other end Ythereof tosaid jaw at a location,thereon adjacent the freerend thereof,` anda feeler member secured tosaid jaw.

ReferencesCitediin the le of this patent UNITEDV STATES PATENTS 665,655Gass ,Ian.. 8; 1901 FOREIGN PATENTS" 15,612 Great Britain of 19033283970 France May-16, 1903

